Practice Areas

CBP Plans New Regulations on Drawback, ACE in 2015

Friday, May 29, 2015

Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg Trade Report

The departments of Homeland Security and the Treasury recently issued their semiannual regulatory agendas, which list the following regulations affecting international trade that could be issued within the next year as well as rulemaking proceedings that have been in process for some time and are not as likely to see further progress in the near term. The expected timeframes for issuance of these rules are indicated in parentheses.

Upcoming Regulations

- a U.S. Customs and Border Protection final rule removing some of the requirements for documentation used to establish proof of exportation for drawback claims (November; first time published)

- a CBP interim final rule reflecting that as of Nov. 1 entry and entry summary information filed electronically must be filed through the Automated Commercial Environment instead of the Automated Commercial System (November; first time published)

- a final rule allowing CBP to disclose to an intellectual property right holder information appearing on merchandise or its retail packaging that may comprise information otherwise protected by the Trade Secrets Act for the purpose of assisting CBP in determining whether the merchandise bears a counterfeit mark (June (previously February))

- separate proposed rules from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau to update procedures for imports and exports of distilled spirits, wine, beer and tobacco products and implement the International Trade Data System all-electronic environment (August (previously April for imports and May for exports))

- a CBP interim final rule shifting authority to make certain decisions regarding customs transactions from port directors to directors of the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (December (previously July))

- a CBP proposed rule that would make various changes to increase the accuracy and reliability of the advance information submitted under the importer security filing rule (December (previously October))

- a CBP proposed rule to implement the Air Cargo Advance Screening pilot as a regulatory program (December (previously August))

- a final rule to enhance CBP’s ability to regulate and track in-bond merchandise and ensure that it is properly entered or exported (August (previously November))

(Treasury appears to have removed from its regulatory agenda a CBP proposed rule designed to encourage participation in the prior disclosure program and to enhance the effectiveness of the duty/revenue demand process.)

Regulations in Process

- a CBP rule finalizing the interim ISF regulations

- a CBP proposed rule to give effect to certain liberalized changes to the NAFTA preference rules of origin that have been agreed to by the U.S., Canada and Mexico

- a CBP final rule that would reflect the planned centralization of the continuous bond program at CBP’s Revenue Division

- final rules amending the customs regulations to reflect free trade agreements with Singapore and Australia